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Wednesday, March 26, 2014

2014 Martinsville-1

2014 Martinsville-1

Heading into each race weekend there are several favorites pundits point to as possible candidates for capturing the win.

With five different winners in the first five races of 2014, predicting a race’s outcome is even more difficult this year.

Kyle
Busch ended up victorious but not before a late restart put Landon
Cassill on the point for a green-white-checkered finish.

Busch’s prize for winning? A probable spot in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

With
the series headed to Martinsville for Sunday’s STP 500, eight-time
winners at the short track Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon have to be
considered the favorites. Neither have won in 2014 and would become the
sixth different driver to win in the first six races – a Chase-era
record.

But, it could be anybody.

Although
Larson came close to claiming his first victory in NASCAR’s premier
series, a win in Saturday’s Nationwide race and a runner-up performance
on Sunday made his trip home one he’ll remember for a long time.

He
at least hopes his second visit to NASCAR’s shortest track will be more
rewarding than his first trip last year when he finished 42nd.

After
five races and five different winners to kick off the NASCAR Nationwide
season as well, the drivers receive a much-deserved weekend off before
returning to action on April 4 at Texas Motor Speedway.

The
series heads to the off week with Regan Smith and Trevor Bayne tied for
the points lead. The strong rookie class continues to impress with at
least two Sunoco Rookie of the Year contenders finishing in the top 10
of every race so far this season.

With
the last four weeks now in the rearview mirror, the NASCAR Camping
World Truck Series finally returns to action at Martinsville Speedway
where the new truck styles make their short-track debut.

Among
the drivers suiting up for the second truck race of the season is
Darrell Wallace Jr., who in his last visit to the track became the
second African-American driver to win a national series race.

ARTICLES OF INTEREST

PETTY ASKED :WHO'S BEST DRIVER

Petty, in the March 1993 issue of Stock Car Racing Magazine, said, "Writers were asking me last year who was the best driver I ever raced against. I told them David Pearson. David and I ran more firsts and seconds than anybody else, and we raced together on dirt tracks, superspeedways, road courses, big tracks and little tracks. It didn't make any difference, you had to beat him every week."

NOTES Johnson On Martin

JIMMIE JOHNSON ON MARK MARTIN"He's too humble of a man, and doesn't understand what he's done in this sport, for this sport, how many young guys have respected what he's done," Johnson said. And then he turned and spoke to Martin directly."You mentioned earlier how we weren't around each other for me to look at your style and want to drive like you. But coming up through ASA, everybody knew who Mark Martin was. I aspired at that time to have people speak of me as they did you. When I came to race in the Busch Series at the time, you were wearing us all out week in and week out. That was our chance to race against Mark Martin and to learn something from him. So ... I'm sure to all of us in this room, you are one of the greatest. We all think the world of you and respect the hell out of you."